|  | - India’s health ministry has confirmed 1,287,945 Covid-19 cases (440,135 active cases) and 30,601 fatalities. 49,310 fresh cases were recorded on Thursday.
- Fatalities across the world are 633,425 (over 15.51 million infections).
The numbers are as of Friday, 12:30 pm IST. Check out the latest data here | |
| | TODAY’S TAKE | | Obesity complicates Covid-19 |  | - Obesity is aggravating the condition of Covid-19 patients, doctors around the world have come to realise. In Delhi, a study by doctors at Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals showed that 70% of nearly 1,000 patients who underwent in-hospital treatment were overweight and obese. Among those to died of Covi-19, 82% were obese, the study showed. Similar observations were made early in the pandemic in the US, France and China. Since the body of evidence has only grown. A large study of primary care records of 17 million people in the UK showed obesity, among others, as a complicating factor. Late June, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated its list of underlying conditions that may increase the risk of illness from Covid-19 to include obesity (a body mass index of 30 or higher).
- The complications caused by obesity is a particular risk for the young, who in the early days of the pandemic was considered a low-risk group. There is no definitive answer to why obesity is a complicating factor. But obesity does increase the risk of respiratory failure, alters the immune system and may cause chronic inflammation that can rapidly escalate out of control with coronavirus infection, say doctors. Doctors in Delhi, too, make similar conclusions. Dr Anoop Misra, chairman, Fortis C-Doc, said obese people have lower oxygenation capacity. “Covid-19 is known to affect the lungs leading to a decline in oxygen saturation, which causes complications,” he said. Obesity also causes heightened inflammation in the body, which was exacerbated by Covid-19, leading to increased risk of morbidity and mortality, Dr Misra added.
- Dr Arun Prasad, senior gastrointestinal and bariatric surgeon, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, said obese people have weaker respiratory muscles, which increases resistance in their airways and lowers lung volumes, therefore aggravating the response to the infection. Other factors include poor antigen-stimulation response in obese persons. Obese patients are also likely to have diabetes and are prone to hyperventilation syndrome.
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| | TELL ME ONE THING | | How does the 30-second Covid-19 test work? |  | - India and Israel have joined forces to develop a Covid-19 test that gives the result in less than 30 seconds. The test, which uses artificial intelligence and machine learning, will cost less than $10 (Rs 750) and delivers a result with 85% accuracy. Regulatory approval is expected in the next few months. The joint team comprises Israeli military scientists and scientists from India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
- The test comprises knowing the history of the patient first, with questions formulated to determine exposure and symptoms. The questionnaire is displayed on the phone of the person administering the procedure.
- Patients undergoing the test have to first inhale through the nose, hold their breath, close one nostril and exhale through the other, into a handheld tube attached to a small bag called the "Air Trap". The tube is further attached to a "Scent Reader", which is a small rectangular device that analyses the breath. It has been tested on about 1,000 Israeli Covid-19 patients and successfully determined who was Covid-19 positive. If the breathalyser result is positive, a further confirmatory test needs to be conducted in a lab.
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| | STAY SAFE | | The heightened risk for cancer patients |  | - New research has examined the relationship between cancer and Covid-19, and two of them show just how dangerous the coronavirus can be for those already fighting cancer. According to the first, a study published in the journal Frontiers in Oncology, people diagnosed with cancer more than 24 months ago are more likely to get severe Covid-19 infection.
- The researchers at King’s College London and Guy’s and St Thomas’ Foundation Trust analysed the case of 156 cancer patients who were diagnosed with Covid-diagnosis between February 29 and May 12 in London. Of these patients, 82% had mild or moderate Covid infection and 18% had severe disease.
- Patient follow-ups, conducted 37 days later, found 22% patients from the cohort died from Covid-19 infection. And those diagnosed with cancer over 24 months before the onset of Covid-19 symptoms were at higher risk. When classified according to the Covid severity, the largest proportions of cancers were haematological (36%). While 40% patients had stage IV cancer, 46% patients had been diagnosed with a malignancy in the last 12 months.
- In another study, conducted at the US Food and Drug Administration's Oncology Center of Excellence, the analysis of the health records of 212,000 people living with cancer found that a Covid diagnosis raised a patient's odds of death 16-fold, compared with cancer patients without the coronavirus. Cancer patients with Covid-19 were also more likely to have other health issues, such as kidney failure, obesity or heart disease — all of which have also been tied to an increased risk for severe coronavirus illness.
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| | | THE GOOD NEWS | | A more affordable Favipiravir soon |  | - What: Pharmaceutical firm Cipla is all set to launch a more affordable version of Favipiravir, for the treatment of Covid-19 patients. An off-patent antiviral drug, Favipiravir, originally developed by Fuji Pharma in Japan, has shown promise in clinical trials for the treatment of Covid-19 patients, especially in mild and moderate cases.
- How: The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research- Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (CSIR-IICT) developed a cost-effective process using locally available chemicals to synthesise this Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API) and transferred the technology to Cipla.
- Why: Last month, India's drug regulator had granted emergency-use authorisation to Glenmark Pharma's favipiravir to treat mild to moderate Covid-19 patients. But this week, the drug controller slapped a notice on Glenmark for the high price of its drug. Glenmark, however, defended the price saying it is the cheapest drug compared to other Covid-19 therapies like remdesivir, tocilizumab, and Itolizumab. The drug controller’s notice had also questioned the company over false claims made on the efficacy of the drug on patients with comorbid conditions like hypertension and diabetes.
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| Written by: Rakesh Rai, Judhajit Basu, Sumil Sudhakaran, Tejeesh N.S. Behl
Research: Rajesh Sharma | |
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